really shakey idle in gear

[akhoundog]

95 2.2 wagon with a auto 120k miles


the car shakes more then normal when in P or N but very bad in any gear. i did some searching and thought it was the IAC? so followed the DYI thread and cleaned it which did nothing. here's the weird part, the car still vibrates after warm but after 10 or so miles it starts to completely go away. i havent tried to let it idle for 30 mins to see if it will stop when just sitting. i do let it warm up every morning for about ten mins here in alaska. when in P or N when it's mildy vibrating if you rev the engine the vibration improves but it's still slightly there. i cant seem to hear anything odd accept for the sound of my dash and various parts shaking.

thanks for any help!

edit: i changed the ATF with mobile synthetic and a new filter this summer which really helped the cars shifting in the winter.

[BMR]

So it runs good, except for the rough idling?

The fact it goes away after the engine warms up makes me think there's a temperature sensor at fault... coolant?

[akhoundog]

Where is the coolant sensor? The odd part is the temp gauge will warm up to normal and it will still be vibrating.

[strausbo]

I thought I would share my experience with the same problem. I have a 1995 Camry with the 2.2L engine. What I have noticed is the car will start fine and idle smooth......until I see the temperature gauge start to move off it's peg. This is when the vibration starts to be detectable. I have owned this car since May of 2011 and have worked alot on the car. It has 169K miles. I replaced the dist. cap, rotor, spark plug wires and spark plugs. All needed to be replaced but I noticed no difference in the vibration. I then changed the front engine mount. This was completely worn out. After installing the new mount...no improvement. My recent repair was to replace the valve cover gasket. This too was past due for replacement and leaking oil. During the project, I removed the PCV valve. It was stuck and sludged up with oil? The rubber grommet in the valve cover was hard as a rock and the seal was loose to the valve cover. I replaced the grommet and PCV during the reassembly process. It may be too early to tell, but it seems to have made a slight difference in the idle vibration. It may be a temp. sensor as previously posted, but which one it is I have no idea. I like these cars and will probably get to the root cause eventually. It will just take me awhile. It is not an urgent issue as the car runs too good otherwise. I will be changing the timing belt and water pump soon only because I have no idea how long it has been on the car. There is no decal under the hood with the mileage and date for the current timing belt. Good luck and post back if you resolve your problem.

[BMR]

Originally Posted by akhoundog

Where is the coolant sensor? The odd part is the temp gauge will warm up to normal and it will still be vibrating.

The sensor for the gage is a separate sensor from the one the ECU monitors, which is called the ECT sensor (Engine Coolant Temperature). Here's a thread showing where the ECT sensor is. It's a bit hard to tell where that pic is - it's on the driver's side of the engine. It's resistance across the terminals should be ~2500 ohms when cold, and ~250 ohms when the engine's warmed up. The voltage going to it should be ~5 VDC; checked with the ignition switch in the "on" position, but engine not running.

[akhoundog]

Thanks for the pointers, I just bought a temp sensor and put it in. Same problem. I hate to think about it but could it be a torque converter problem?

[BMR]

Went back a re-read your initial post more carefully.

the car shakes more then normal when in P or N but very bad in any gear.

For some reason my brain stuck a "not" in there; "but not very bad in any gear".

That could be motor mounts.

[akhoundog]

Funny because I re-read your quote of my post before reading what you and thought I don't remember putting a not in there

[BMR]

OK, I went back and read your edited post, and I'm thinking motor mounts. If you put it in D or R with your foot on the brake, does the engine move much? Need to have the hood open to see from the driver's seat. A little movement is normal; like a half inch or so.

[akhoundog]

Moves maybe an inch or slightly more, could make sense... Wouldnt the cold effect the engine mounts in a negative way? I did the dogbone about a month ago. The last dogbone lasted only a year.

[BMR]

More than an inch is too much. And the dogbone lasting only a year is another strong clue pointing to engine mounts. The cold makes the rubber stiffer, so would make the vibration feel worse. Here's a DIY thread showing how to replace them.

And for future reference, here's a link to what's called "the stickies"; a list of links to a bunch of DIY threads for common repairs.

[BMR]

akhoundog - been thinking more about your problem, because it bugged me that it goes away when the engine's warmed up. Motor mounts wouldn't do that. I'm wondering if you've got a problem with the EGR valve/system malfunctioning?

[akhoundog]

I was considering that too, maybe I can clean it? I picked up motor mounts today. Napa had the front schucks had the rear, busted a craftsman socket on the front and schucks sold me the wrong rear, no one locally has the rear so ill order it on rock auto. Both front and rear were loose like joy sticks, the schucks version was about 3 inches too tall and a smaller spindle.

[akhoundog]

Thanks for all the help, the problem still exists so far I have:
Cleaned egr, new coolant sensor, new engine mounts, new plugs, wires, cap, rotor, fuel filter, fuel cap, cleaned IAC and ran a tank of chevron techron. The idle has dropped down to about 700 rpm. I ran it for about 300 miles on the highway and got about 28 mpg.

[BMR]

Dang!... sorry to hear that. I'm stumped.... VSV not working correctly??? But the EGR system not working properly usually trips the check engine light?!